Since
quite long we require a book in English
which may give us knowledge of past
people’s evil deeds and their
reformers sent by God in the form of His
messengers time to time. The writer felt
its necessity and wrote these methods of
their reform adopted by messengers of
Allah The Writer used quite simple
language so that common people may
understand easily about the lives of
messengers All the facts explained in
story form just to keep reader’s
interest completely.

In
this book writer explained about the
role of Satan (disobeying angles). How
he misguided Hadrat Adam (A.S) and Bibi
Hawwa in the heaven and made conspiracy
to bring them out of the heaven. Since
then human beings came into existence on
earth. The Writer explained the
evil deeds of various people who were
betrayed by Satan, and various
messengers were sent by God to reform
them time to time. When these
people became adamant to accept the
orders of Allah preached by messengers
continued worshipping idols, and
remained indulge in ill deeds then
God’s wrath fell to perish them
completely and saved only those who were
true followers of God’s Messengers.

The
writer explained the various old
situations faced by Hazrat Adam (A.S),
Hazrat Noah (A.S), Hazrat Hood (A.S),
Hazrat Sualeh (A.S), Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S),
Hazrat Loot (A.S), Hazrat Yusuf (A.S),
and Hazrat Suleman (A.S). All the
Messengers remained firm to their belief
in Allah and discharged their duties
according to God’s orders. They did
not give up their mission even in
hardships.

We
hope the readers will be benefited after
reading this book and will follow the
right path through out their lives.

There
was a time when no one lived on the
earth. Then Allah Ta’ala willed to in
habit it with human beings. The first
human being, He created was Hazrat Adam
(Alaihis Salaam). He was made of clay;
All of us are his offspring’s.

Allah
had created genii and angles even before
the human beings, when he willed to
create Hazrat Adam (A.S) he said to the
angles, “we will send him as our
khaleefa (vice gerent) on earth.”

Do
you know who is a khaleefa? We tell you.
Suppose you have some property. If you
appoint some one, giving him necessary
instructions, to manage the affairs of
that property, he will be your khaleefa
there. Similar is the meaning of
appointing man as khaleefa on earth.
This is Allah’s earth and He has sent
here man to perform certain duties. He
has also given him necessary
instructions. Therefore man should do
here everything according to Allah’s
will; those who do accordingly, are
Allah’s true khaleefa.

So,
when Allah told the angels that He
wanted to send man as His khaleefa on
earth, they said, “we are afraid that
this man will do mischief and
bloodshed on earth, while we are there
to praise Thee and are always engaged in
Thy worship,

Allah
said, “You do not know what I know.
How do you know what qualities we have
stored in man? When sent to earth, he
will discover the hidden treasures there
with the help of his wisdom which we
have granted him avail himself of our
creations. Now tell me if you know about
those things. “”Our Lord”, replied
the angels, “We don’t know anything
more than what you have told us. You are
All-knower and All-wise.”

Than
Allah asked Hazrat Adam [A.S] if he knew
about those things. Hazrath Adam (A.S)
told every thing because he had know
about everything on earth with the help
of the wisdom which Allah had given
“Do you see,” Allah, then said to
the angels, “we had told you that we
have knowledge of everything in the
heavens and earth, whether they are open
or hidden.

There
after Allah ordered the angels to bow
down before Hazrat Adam (A.S) and accept
his superiority. All of them obeyed to
Allah’s command, but Shaitan (Satan),
who was also present there, did not do
so. Instead, he proudly said, “I just
can’t bow down before this man who is
made of clay while I am better than him
because I am made of fire.”

Allah
did not like this proud attitude of
Shaitan and expelled him from His court.
He was abused and will continue to be
cursed till the Doom’s day when he and
all his followers will be thrown into
Hell.

Allah
also created for Hazrat Adam [A.s] wife
‘Hawwa (Eve), to live with. Hazrat
Hawwa (A.S) is the mother of all
mankind. Then Allah sent both of them to
Paradise. There were very good fruits
and other delicious eatables and comfort
there. He asked them to live there and
eat and drink whatever they wished. He,
however, forbade them to go near a
certain tree as it was of no use to
them. They lived on in Paradise happily.

On
the other hand, Shaitan was very sad
over his expulsion. But instead of
accepting his guilt, repenting, and
seeking Allah’s forgiveness he became
adamant with anger and pride. Believing
that Hazrat Adam (A.S) and Hazrat Hawwa
(A.S) had caused his expulsion from
Allah’s court he decided to take
revenge. As he was aware of Allah’s
command to the two about the particular
tree, he one day approached them with an
innocent face and said. “Do you know
why Allah has given everything to you in
Paradise but forbidden you from going
near that tree! In fact, this is a very
good tree and anyone who eats its fruit
will never die. He will rather become an
angle.” Swearing repeatedly, he said,
“I am telling all this only because I
am your friend well wisher.”

Deceived
by the innocent-looking man who claimed
to be their friend but was, in fact
their enemy, Hazrat Adam (A.S) and
Hazarat Hawwa (A.S) one day ate the
forbidden fruit. As soon as they did so,
their bodies were stripped of the
heavenly attire and they were left
naked. Poor Adam and Hawwa covered
themselves with tree leaves. But unlike
Shaitan, they immediately realized that
they had committed a grave mistake and
annoyed their Lord. Soon, they started
beseeching Allah and seeking His
forgiveness. Allah liked this and
forgave their mistake. He also told them
Shaitan was their open enemy and that
they should not be deceived by these
words.

After that Allah sent both of them to
earth. He asked them to live there for
some time and do such deeds as pleased
Allah. He also told them all such things
that please Him. Thus Hazrat Adam (A.S)
was the first Messenger of Allah. Allah
also told them that whoever of them did
good deeds and lived in the world as His
true khaleefa, would be sent back to
Paradise after death and whoever did not
tread His path, would be thrown into
Hell along with Shaitan.

Things
to Remember

Man
has always been man, and the
offspring of Hazrat Adam (A.S).
Those who say that men’s ancestors
were monkeys or apes, are wrong.
They are in darkness and deprived of
Allah’s teachings.

To
err is human, but those who repent
and seek Allah’s forgiveness are
loved by Him while those who do not
accept their mistake and repent, the
brothers of Shaitan. They will be
thrown into Hell.

The
first man who inhabited this earth,
Hazrat Adam (A.S), was the Messenger
of Allah. Thus Allah not only
provided food and shelter, to man
but also arranged for his guidance
to the right paths from the very
beginning.

Man
is the khaleefa of Allah on earth.
It is his duty to utilize His
bounties according to His will; Man
has no authority or claim of
ownership over anything here. The
state belongs to Allah and should be
governed according to His will and
command.

Those
who obey Allah and follow His orders
are His noble servants. They will
find a place in Paradise in the
Hereafter. Those who deny Allah’s
existence and are not His true
khaleefa, will be thrown into Hell
because they annoy Allah.

Hazrat
Adam and Hazrat Hawwa (Alaihumas Salaam)
lived on in the world for a long time.
Their offspring increased manifold,
spread all over and settled in far flung
areas. Go some days they kept in mind
what their grand father Hazrat Adam (A.S)
had told them. But with the Passage of
time, they began to forget the good
things preached by Hazrat Adam (A.S) and
their God. They would make idols of
their ancestors and worship them on any
thing that benefited or frightened them.
Then Allah sent another of his noble
servants, Hazrat Nooh (A.S) as his
prophet to preach them good things.

Do
you know who is a prophet! A prophet is
a noble man chosen by Allah to convey
His commandments and will to His
servants on earth. Such noble men
are called prophets. These prophets
convey Allah’s message to His servants
and preach them to follow the path shown
by Allah. They have been sent by Allah
in all parts of the world to spread
Allah’s message to every people.

Similarly,
Hazrat Nooh (A.S) called his people
towards virtue, prevented from the evil
and stopped them from worshipping false
gods and deities. He said, “My
brothers, obey and worship none else
than Allah, who is your God. Listen to
me and give up worshipping all other
gods. If you do so, Allah will forgive
you, bestow on you honour in the world
and a place in Paradise in the
Hereafter.

When
one accepts Allah as one’s Lord and
follows His orders, one cannot do
anything according to his own will nor
can one usurp others property nor he
will be free to do any or everything. He
will have to live like a noble man and
serve others, sometimes sacrificing his
own benefit and sometime putting his
life in danger for the sake of truth and
justice. But those who put their own
benefits and pleasures before any thing
else are incapable of doing all this.
Some what similar had become the
condition of the people of Hazrat Nooh (A.S).
They had got so much spoilt as to defy
any reformation attempts. They would
close their ears and run away when told
good things or asked to act according to
Allah Will they were very proud.

Hazrat
Nooh (A.S) made every attempt to back
them, conveyed Allah’s message at
their meetings and in the markets and
approached them individually at their
home. He repeatedly asked them to not to
revolt against to one who had created
them and provided food and shelter. He
asked them seek Allah’s forgiveness
and return to Him who was most Merciful,
who sent down showers, provided wealth
and children caused rivers to flow and
grew fruit and grain. He asked them why
they had turned their face from their
Lord who had given them wisdom, made
them good human beings, created the
heavens, the earth, the sun and the
moon, which gave them warmth and
light, and grew plants from the earth in
which they walked, and lived.

He
also reminded them that they had to die
one day and would not live the world of
ever. He told them that after death they
would return to Allah and get reward for
their deeds, good and bad. He reminded
them that they could not escape from
Him.

Hazrat
Nooh (A.S) preached his people for 950
years but none, except a few, listened
to him. Instead, they followed their
elders who were proud of their wealth
and children Even his son did not need
to his call and reminded with the Kafirs.
[A Kafir is one who does not believe in
the existence of Allah and His
prophets.] These Kafirs became the enemy
of Hazrat Nooh (A.S). They were led by
those who were rich and chieftains of
their people. They started hatching
conspiracies against Hazrat Nooh (A.S).
They would laugh at him and ask who,
except a few bad mannered persons, had
heeded to his call. They would say that
none among the notables was with him and
that these mean and low caste people
should not be allowed to sit with them.

Hazrat
Nooh (A.S) tolerated all this but
continued his mission. He was firm in
his resolve and knew fully well that he
was doing everything only to please his
Lord. He did not give up his mission and
remained stuck to his work.

Evil
does not always prosper. Allah keeps His
grip loses as long as there is the
slightest hope of reform among His
servants. Therefore, when the people of
Hazrat Nooh (A.S) refused to follow
their prophet, Allah decided to
eliminate them from the surface of the
earth and informed Hazrat Nooh (A.S)
that His wrath would soon befall his
people. He was also ordered to build an
ark; big enough to accommodate all the
Muslims and one pair each of all the
animals in that habitation.

Hazrat
Nooh (A.S) got on with the job of making
the ark. People were amazed because
there was neither sea river to float the
ark on. They ridiculed him and
said: “See, the old man will float the
ark on land.” Aware of the matter,
Hazrat Nooh (A.S) replied, “Don’t
laugh’ because you will soon know what
is the matter. Then we will be
laughing at you.”

The
day finally arrived when the wrath of
Allah was to fall lone the Kafirs.
Suddenly water streams began to rush out
of the earth and even ovens were filled
with water. From the sky also, heavy
rains started falling, rivers started
overflowing and there was a deluge
everywhere. Everything was under water.

Hazrat
Nooh (A.S) had already climbed on to the
ark along with his companions. The ark
was floating on the water while the
entire habitation was sinking.

For
the last time Hazrat Nooh (A.S) turned
to his son who ad joined the Kafirs, and
said, “My son, leave the company of
these cruel people. Obey Allah’s order
and climb on the ark.” Not heeding to
his father’s advice, he replied that
he would save himself from water by
climbing on top of a mountain.

“None
except my Beneficent Allah can save you
today,” cried Hazrat Nooh (A.S) even
as he was saying so, a high wave carried
away his son along with all the others
outside the ark. Hazrat Nooh (A.S)
pleaded with Allah: “O” Lord, My son
has also drowned. You had promised me
that you will save my family but it was
my son who has also drowned.”

“No”,
Allah replied,” he was no more from
among your family members as he would
not do good deeds. He was, in fact, from
amongst the Kafirs. If you do no know
even this, why do you plead with us?”

Then
Hazrat Nooh (A.S.) understood
everything. He sought Allah’s
forgiveness and realized that everyone
would get the reward according to his
deeds, even if he was a prophet’s son.

None
except those who were in the ark was
alive. The deluge had by now started
receding and the raining stopped. The
ark of Hazrat Nooh (A.S) stopped atop a
mountain, Judea by name. The noble
servants of Allah and Hazrat nooh (A.S)
came out of it and lived and settled
there with all the families and mercies
of Allah in the world. Evil vanished and
virtue started prospering. Only those
noble servants of Allah, who were called
as mean and low-caste, had survived and
were made the owners of the earth.

Things
to Remember

Habitual
evil-doer does not like good things.

It
is not an easy task to call people
towards good because one has to face
a lot of big problems for this.

When
the noble servants of Allah show the
Right Path to the people they do not
think who listens to them and who
does not. They go on doing their
work. Hazrat Nooh (A.S.) also
continued to do this for 950 years.

Allah
allows His servants to go their own
as long as He wills and till there
is the slightest hope of their
reforms. But when they do not accept
His sovereignty, Allah’s wrath
befalls them and then He clears the
earth of evil-doer.

After
Hazrat Nooh (A.S.), Allah bestowed
wealth and strength on another people
called “Aad” people were very proud
of their strength. They had large
gardens. They would build high buildings
and lived so luxuriously as if they
would never die. Proud of their
affluence, they had started committing
atrocities on the poor people. The rich
and the high ups among them had created
a lot of disorder Drunk with the power
of wealth; they had forgotten Allah and
started worship of hundreds of gods and
goddesses.

When
the people of “Aad” were totally
spoilt and had forgotten the good things
told by Allah, Allah created for them a
messenger to show the right path. He was
Hazrat Hood (A.S.)

Hazrat
Hood (A.S.) called his people towards
Allah. He said to them, ‘None except
Allah is worthy of worship. No god or
goddess deserves this. Man is the
servant of only one God, and that is
Allah. Man should always follow only
Allah’s order as none else’s can
reform one’s life. The Lord and
Creator of everyone is Allah. You have
no right to rule over the weak and to
perpetuate atrocities on them.”

On
this chieftains of “Aad” said, “O
Hood (A.S.), you are stupid. Whatever
you are saying is all falsehood and
concocted by you.”

“No
brothers, “replied Hazrat Hood (A.S.),
“It is not so. I have been sent by
Allah as His prophet. I am saying
everything on behalf of the Creator of
this universe and for your good. I am
calling you towards the one who is the
Sustainer of the whole world. See, the
same Lord has made you the owner of this
earth after the people of Hazrat Nooh (A.S.)
and you are aware of their fate. They
has also refused to accept these things
and adopted the course of evil, leaving
that of virtue. They had also forgotten
Allah and you know their fate. You too
will not be spread if you refused to
obey Allah who has given you wealth and
strength.”

After
listening to all this, the chief
of the Aad people said, “How can
discard the religion of our forefathers
and describe as wrong their traditions?
Were our ancestors so stupid as to have
worshipped these gods and goddesses? We
cannot agree with you.”

“O
brothers”, replied Hazrat Hood (A.S.),
“It is not good to blindly follow the
earlier people. Your Lord has granted
you wisdom. Why don’t you yourself
think whether I am saying right or
wrong? Why don’t you consider that I
am not demanding anything from you.
Remember, if you did not heed to my
advices, the Lord of his world will sent
His wrath on you in the same manner as
He did on those before you. If you pay
scant attention to His word, its
consequences will be very bad.”

The
people of Aad were drunk with wealth.
All these talks looked odd to them in
view of their luxuries and comforts.
They laughed these away and said,”O
Hood (A.S), you seem to have been cursed
by one of your gods and you have gone
mad. That is why you are talking like
this. Any way, you often threaten of the
wrath, then why don’t you call it
right now. We have decided no to follow
you as we have heard such things so my
times in the past.”

Not
impressed by their argument, Hazrat Hood
(A.S) continued to teach them but
succeeded inpermading very few people.
The rest of the people remained
unchanged.

Finally,
Allah decided to send His wrath on this
people. One day a cloud appeared from
one side of the sky. Every one became
happy and said, “Today a cloud has
appeared. Heavy rain will fall as it is
needed.” But they were unaware that
the cloud there were happy at was, in
fact, the wrath of Allah for which they
had wished. It was not a cloud but a
hurricane the like of which had never
been seen before. The hurricane was the
wrath of Allah to destroy the people of
Aad. It continued for seven or eight
days and up rooted everything with its
force. High building and big tree came
down and non one except Hazrat Hood (A.S.)
and his Muslim companions were spared in
the entire habitation. It was totally
razed to the ground and looked deserted
for ages,

The
remnants of the Aad people’s
habitations can be seen even today in
the south of Arabia, where this people
lived. When the Holy Quran was being
revealed, the Arabs passed through these
remnants knowing that there lived a very
strong people.

Things
to Remember

1.A
man drunk with wealth often forgets
Allah and tends to worship the gods of
his own choice.

2.Man
is the servant of Allah and he should
live as such, obeying Allah’s orders.

3.To
follow the prophets of Allah is a must
for obedience to Allah. Without it the
obedience is in complete.

4.The
traditions of our forefathers may be
right as well as wrong, but we should
accept only the right ones and give up
the wrong ones.

5.Continuous
disobedience to Allah leads to nothing
but destruction and devastation. The
disobedient peoples fall a prey, later
or sooner, to Allah’s wrath.

After
the people of Aad, Thamud’s people
progressed and prospered. They had
everything like wealth, higher
buildings, green fields, and orchards of
dates. But gradually they also fell to
evil ways and began to forget Allah. The
elders among them became rich and proud
and oppressed the poor and the low, Like
capitalists, they wanted to possess
everything even at the cost of there
miseries and difficulties. They did not
bother about others and always looked
for their own benefits. The excess of
wealth had made them blind and they had
begun to do whatever they liked,
forgetting Allah.

Then
Allah created Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.) to
show the Right Path to the people of
Thamud. Hazrat Sualeh (A.S) said to
them, “Brothers, do you not fear Allah
? Don’t forget that none else is your
Lord and Sustainer. It is He who created
you, inhabited you on this earth and
provided you various kinds of things for
your living. Therefore, you should
worship only Him.”

The
Thamud people did not heed as these
things appeared strange to them. They
said, “O Sualeh (A.S.), we had pinned
high hopes on you because you are an
enterprising young man among us. But it
is strange that you ask us to abandon
our gods, whom even our forefathers
respected and worshipped. We have doubts
about what you are saying.”

“Brothers,”
“replied Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.),” the
Lord of this universe, who is the Lord
of you and me also, has sent me to you
as his prophet. I am not saying anything
my own but on behalf of that Lord. Fear
Allah and accept what I say. And, you
know, I don’t demand anything from you
in exchange of it.”

The
Thamud people said’ “strange you are
a prophet. How can you be the prophet of
Allah while you are also a man like us.
It appears some one has cast a spell on
you that is why you are talking all
this.”

“My
brothers,” said Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.),
“It is not so. I say everything on
your Lord’s behalf. And I am also
scared who will protect me from His grip
if I don’t obey Him and convey His
message to you. All I ask you is to give
up obeying the rebels against Allah, who
spread mischief on earth and cannot
bring about any reform. Only Allah is
worthy of worship and obedience.”

After
having listened to all this, they
finally said, How can we accept that you
after the prophet of Allah unless you
show us a sign to prove it. Only then
can we accept what you say.”

On
this, Allah suddenly created a she-camel
which was a little different from
others. Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.) then said
to those people, “see this she-camel
is one of the signs of Allah’s
creation. Let it graze freely and do not
tease it. If you still did not at listen
to me and started teasing it, will imply
that you are not all prepared to accept
Allah. If you do so, Allah’s wrath
will befall you and you will be
annihilated.

“You
should not forget that the wealth you
boast off has been given to you by the
same Allah who provided you shelter on
this earth after the people of Aad.
Thank Allah for his bounties and do not
spread mischief on earth.”

Agreeing
with Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.) some poor and
weak people joined him. But the rich and
the elders, who were their enemy, asked
them, “Do you really accept Sualeh (A.S.)
as the prophet of Allah !”

“Yes,”
the weak people replied,” we believe
that Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.) that Hazrat
Sualeh (A.S.) is the prophet of
Allah,”

On
this, the proud people said, “We call
false whom you accept as true,” and
turned to the she-camel which Allah had
created as His sign. They first chopped
off its legs and then killed it. Then
they proudly said to Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.),
“If you are the prophet of Allah, as
you claim to be then inviting the wrath
of Allah of which you often frighten
us.”

“All
right,” replied Hazrat Sualeh (A.S.)
“enjoy yourselves for three more days
in your houses and then you will see
that my vow is not false,”

Do
you see how much the people of Thamud
had got spoiled? As there was no hope of
their return to the Right Path, Allah
decided to eliminate them. His wrath
befell those who had refused to accept
what Hazrat Sualeh (A.S) had said and
Allah saved with His mercy Hazrat Sualeh
(A.S.) and all those who had followed
him.

It
so happened that on the third day of the
killing of she-camel, a big earthquake
caught all the rebels against Allah
unaware in their sleep and in the
morning, all of them lay prostrate and
dead. It looked as if no one ever lived
in that habitation, because it was
entirely rendered as a heap of bricks
and debris.

We
should not forget that Thamuds were
deprived of Allah’s blessings because
they had refused to accept His orders.
We have a lesson in these incidents of
the former peoples. There is no way to
prosper with peace except thought the
obedience of Allah and His Prophet.

Allah
sent His messengers repeatedly because
man has a tendency to forget Allah.
These prophets showed man the Right
Path. Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) was also one
of these prophets.

The
family in which Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
was born used to make idols, sell them
in the markets and worship them. Similarly,
all the people of that country
worshipped such gods and goddesses,
forgetting Allah. They would bow down
before them and seek the fulfillment of
their wishes from them; they would
worship stars, the sun and the moon too.
In this way they had deified many gods,
leaving God.

Recognition
of God by HAZRAT IBRAHIM [A.S.]

After
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) attained some age
one observed what his family and people
had been doing and wondered how the
idols made by them could have the
strength to accomplish their tasks and
incur loss or profit to them. This
thought often haunted him. One night is
so happened that he saw a bright star in
the sky and the people started
worshipping it. Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
said, “It is my Lord.” But, soon the
star began to disappear, the
disappearing star do not appeal me”.

After
some time, the shining moon appeared and
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) said, “This is
my Lord.” But that too disappeared
after sometime on which he said, “This
too is not my lord. He is someone else.
Had He not shown me the Right Path, I
too would have gone astray like my
people”.

With
the outset of the morning rose the sun,
bright and shinning. Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
said, “Yes, this is milord. This is
the biggest.” But came the evening and
the sun too hid its face. Disappointed,
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) said to his
people, “Brothers, I have got fed up
with these “gods”. They seem to be
subservient to someone’s command and
abide by laws made by someone to fulfill
his wish. They can neither rise nor
disappear according to their own will.

“Brothers,
I will worship only Him who created the
earth and the heavens and on whose
orders are moving the sun and the moon.
My Lord is one and I do not accept
anyone else as His associate. It is not
correct to worship the sun and the moon
as they themselves are moving on My
Lord’s direction. I have abandoned all
of them and become the worshipper of
Allah alone. I cannot associate anyone
else with Him.”

When
his people heard all this, they said to
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) “It has been the
practice of our forefathers to worship
these things. Were our ancestors stupid?
Would they not understand anything?”

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) said, “Do you really
make a dispute Allah, who showed me the
Right Path. I am not scared of you nor
do I fear your gods and goddesses, whom
you have made associates of Allah.
Everything happens according to my
Lord’s will. He is All-Powerful,
All-knowing.

“And
why should I fear those things which you
have made Allah’s associates since I
know well that it is false and has no
substance. All this is concocted by you
yourselves. Those who have faith in
Allah are strong and on the Right Path.

When
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) realized that
Allah had shown him the Right Path and
given the knowledge to discover the
right thing, he one day talked his
father who would make idols, sell them
in the markets and also worship them. He
said, “My father, why do you worship
the idols who can neither hear nor see,
nor are of any worth for you. My father,
all that you are doing is Shaitan’s
business. I advise you not to obey
Shaitan as he himself has been
distracted and has disobeyed Allah. I
fear lest Allah’s wrath befall you.
Then even your friendship with Shaitan
will not come to your rescue.

“My
father, Allah has given me knowledge and
if you please. I can show you the Right
Path.”

After
hearing all this, the father of Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) got very much annoyed and
said: “So, you have finally turned
your face from our gods and goddesses.
Listen, if you don’t turn back, I will
stone you too much. Get out of my
sight.”

Saddened
at his father’s harsh words, Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) said, “All right, turn
me out if you so desire. I can only pray
to my Allah to bless you, forgive your
sins and show the Right Path. I am
prepared to give up the gods and
goddesses whom you worship but do not
want to leave and forget my Lord.”

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) was turned out of his
house. He gave up everything for
the sake of truth.

Continuous
Preaching

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) told the people at his
village what he had said to his father.
He would preach them what he had
accepted as truth. He said, “What is
this that you make these idols with your
own hands and then worship them. Can
these idols incur you any benefit or are
they capable of harming you?”

They
replied, “But this has been the
tradition of our forefathers and we have
seen that they too used to worship idols
in the same manner.”

“Brothers,
“replied Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) “you
are mistaken idol-worship is always
wrong whether done by you or by your
elders. An evil does not become a virtue
only because it has been done by someone
earliest. It is absurd to say that an
age-old tradition is always good. Man
should apply his own mind and judge what
is good and what is bad.”

They
said, “Well, you call idol-worship as
wrong and not a good thing but please
tell us if you have anything better and
truer than this. It is not a joke or
game to declare at will any thing as
bad”.

Why
not, “answered Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.),
“I tell you that you’re true Lord I
He who is the Lord of this earth and the
heavens and created all these.”

The
people listened to all this but could
not refute since they knew that the
creator and the Lord of this universe is
someone else but it was very difficult
for them to give up idol-worship
practiced by their elders. They would
listen to what Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
said but do what they wished. Therefore,
he one day thought; “Now I will play a
trick in their absence.”

New
Style of Preaching

On
day when all of them had gone somewhere
leaving Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) behind, he
pulled down all their idols except the
big one. When they returned they got
very angry and said, “Who has behaved
like this with our gods it must be the
handiwork of someone very cruel.”
“Who else, “intervented one of
them”, but the young man called
Ibrahim (A.S.). We should call him and
show to all the people what he has
done.”

When
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) went there, they
asked him, “O Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.),
have you done all this to our god”?

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) replied, “why don’t
you ask this big one. It would have done
all this. It will tell you everything if
it can speak.”

Hearing
this, all of them started thinking and
wondering that they worshipped such gods
as could not look after themselves what
to say of others. Ashamed, they said to
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.), “you know that
this big one cannot speak. Now, please
you tell us how all this happened.”

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) said, “Brothers, just
think that you have rejected Allah and
worship those who can incur you neither
profit nor loss. I am fed up with you as
well as your gods and goddesses whom you
worship. It is strange that cannot you
understand who is the real Lord and the
Master of your fate.”

Decision
to Kill the Prophet

All
the people become furious at this as
they could now come to know whose
handiwork it was to destroy the idols.
They suggested to throw Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
into fire as revenge. Soon a big heap of
firewood was set aflame and Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) thrown into it.

And
Lo. and behold, the fire became cool by
the command of Allah because He had to
assign him several tasks. We have not
been told how it happened, but it so
happened that Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) was
saved from the fire.

None
can kill whom Allah wants to save. The
enemies Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) had done
their work and thrown him into fire
believing that his fate was sealed. But
how can fire burn a thing unless ordered
by its Creator to do so. One who can
enable it to burn something is also
capable of turning it into harmless and
cool.

Migration
(Hijrat)

By
now Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) had fully know
that his people would not accept what he
had said to them and now it was futile
to further preach them. Therefore, he
decided to move to some other country
and invite people there to the Path of
Allah.

Leaving
his house, his father, other family
members, relatives and everything
behind, Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) started
traveling from one place to another and
preached Allah’s teachings to the
people and invited them to the fold of
Allah. Now Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) had
become very old.

Service
of Islam by the two sons

In
his old age, Allah endowed Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) with two sons, Hazrat
Ismael (A.S.), the elder, and Hazrat
Ishaq (A.S.) the younger.

Like
a man prepared to utilize all his means
to accomplish a task, Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
decided to involve his two sons in the
task which he had been doing all through
his life. He left Hazrat Ishaq (A.S.) in
Syria and settled Hazrat Ismael (A.S.)
at a place in Arabia where Makkah is
situated. Leaving his wife and the elder
son at the lonely and barren field, he
prayed to Allah, “O my Lord, I have
left my offspring at a land which is
completely barren.

O
Lord, save me and my sons from
worshipping idols as many people have
gone astray and begun to worship idols
and forget you. Lest my sons should also
follow them. O my Lord, I have settled
my sons in this part of the earth. So
that they establish Namaz. O my Lord,
provide them food and water and create
various kinds of fruits by your infinite
mercy.”

Test
Case for Hazrat Ibarahim

Calling
Allah’s name is easy but dedicating
one’s entire life for His sake is not.
Allah also tests those who decide to
tread His Path. Similarly, when Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) decided to give up the
religion of his fore fathers and adopt
Allah’s Deen, he was put to a severe
test by Allah. He had to abandon his
land, abode and everything and put his
life at stake. With all this, he proved
that nothing is dear to him before
Allah’s will. But one test still
remained for him and it was to be seen
whether his love for his sons was any
more than for Allah.

Sacrifice
of the Son

It
so happened that one night Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) saw in his dream that he
was slaughtering his son, Ismael (A.S.)
He soon realized its implication and
called Ismael (A.S.) and told him what
he had seen in the dream. After
listening to this and also realizing
what Allah demanded of his father,
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.), the son of a man
who had never gone against the will of
his Lord given up everything to please
his Allah and given away his sons for
the establishment of Allah’s Deen,
replied: “My father obey the command
given by Allah. You will, God willing,
find me steadfast.”

How
good were those fathers to whom nothing
was dearer than Allah and the sons who
got ready even to sacrifice their lives
at the call of Allah. As a matter of
fact, whatever we possess belongs to
Allah and no to us. This is what Islam
means; that is what man should accept
and be prepared to sacrifice everything
in the way of Allah when called for. He
should learn that he will obey Allah’s
command and nothing will be dearer to
him than Allah.

So,
when the two noble servants of Allah
Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) (may Allah bless
them both) got ready to execute
Allah’s order and the moment Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) laid down his son, Ismael
(A.S.), it was proved that to Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) Allah’s commandment was
dearer than his own son, and that was
what was to be judged, Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
materialized what he had seen in his
dream and like a Muslim, got ready to
sacrifice the thing which was dearest to
him at the will of Allah.

Allah
accept his sacrifice and said, “No
doubt, you have materialized your dream
and now there is no need to sacrifice
your son.”

Lesson
for us

All
of us are also Muslim and believe that
whatever we possess is not ours but
belongs to Allah. We have also affirmed
to obey Allah’s orders, to reject
others nor care for others wishes. There
is a lesson also for us in what Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) had done. That is why we
commemorate it every year by sacrificing
animals on Baqr-Eid (Eidul Azha). When
we sacrifice the God-given animals in
his way, we, in fact, refresh our belief
that our life and property belong to
Allah and after ready to sacrifice
everything in His way when called to do
so.

Allah’s
Friend

How
severe tests were Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
put to; He lost his abode, was expelled
from his country, thrown into fire and
had to wander from one country to
another. But he proved himself up to the
mark and, above all, surprised everyone
by getting ready to sacrifice his
beloved son at the slightest instance of
his Lord. That is why Allah called him
as His friend and made him the leader of
the mankind.

When
told by Allah that “we make you the
leader of world,” Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
asked Him if the same status was being
awarded to his sons also. On this Allah
replied.” See, my declaration is not
for those who tread the wrong Path and
oppress themselves.” It is not true
that a person is dear to Allah only
because he belongs to a particular race
of family. But the one who does good
deeds and passes one’s life with the
belief in Allah as one’s Lord and
sustainer, is dear to Allah.

Construction
of Kaabah

After
this Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) began to
construct Kaabah by the order of Allah.
Kaabah is a place in the Arabian city of
Makkah and was exclusively built for the
worshippers of Allah. While raising its
walls, Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) and Hazrat
Ismael (A.S) were busy in praying, “O
our Lord, accept our effort. You are the
listener to our supplications and
All-wise. You are fully aware that we
are building this house only to earn
your pleasure. O Lord make us true
Muslims and created such persons
(Muslims) amongst us as would obey only
your orders. Teach us how to worship you
and forgive our sings. You are the
Merciful the Forgiver.

“O
our Lord, create amongst us a prophet
who would recite your scriptures and
convey your orders to the people, enable
them to understand your Deen and clean
them of evils.

“O
our Lord, you are All-Powerful,
all-wise.”

At
the completion of the world on Kaabah
Allah ordered Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) to
keep it clear of the filth of idol
worship.

He
told him that it was Allah’s house
only and asked him, therefore, to keep
it from those associating others with
Allah and turns it into a house of peace
so that people from all over the world
could come there and return after
learning the lesson of worshipping only
one God.

Then
these people should spread the message
of the oneness of God all over the
world, circumambulate the house, and bow
down before Allah, i.e., practice Namaz.

Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) fulfilled Allah’s
command and made Kaabah the biggest
centre of the oneness of God.

This
is the description of the life and
teachings of Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.). Now
think how great a stupid he is who
neglects these things. The best thing
for a man is to recognize his true
sustainer and obey only His orders. This
is what Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.) displayed
during his entire lifetime. Whenever his
Lord ordered him to perform some task,
he did it immediately said,” I am an
obedient servant of only the Lord of
this entire universe.”

Last
will

During
the last hours of his death, Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.) called his sons, grand
son and other family members and said to
them, “O my sons, Allah has liked for
you the Deen which I have taught and
preached you. Now I advise you to live
all your life as Muslim and die as a
Muslim.”

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) was the nephew of Hazrat
Ibrahim (A.S.). He was also the prophet
of Allah. When Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.)
left his country, his nephew also
accompanied him, He was sent to Syria to
show the Right Path to a people there
who lived near a small ocean called the
Dead Sea. This sea is several thousands
of feet below the sea level.

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) told first these people some
salient features of Islam.

He
said: [1] “O people, your Lord is the
one who created you. You should,
therefore, worship Him and follow His
orders only, [2] Brothers, do everything
according to the will of Allah and
always fear Him lest you should earn His
displeasure, [3] to please Allah, do
what I ask you to do and follow me, [4]
I do not demand anything from you as
price of my work. Allah ill reward me
and I do not have to take anything from
you.

After
these sermons, Hazrat Loot (A.S.) tried
to prevent these people fro the dirty
practice of sodomy (sexual intercourse
with males) which they were addicted to.
Before those people, none was aware of
this thing and they were the first to do
this shameless act.

As
you know a man involved in evils
gradually tends to like them. Therefore,
when they heard Hazrat Loot (A.S.)
advising them to give up the practice of
sodomy, they got annoyed and retorted,
“So you are the one to have descended
on us a noble man. If you happen to be
so, we will turn you out from our
habitation. Deliver these sermons
somewhere else; we have no place for
you.”

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) tried a lot to make them
understand and openly told them about
the bad consequences of displeasing
Allah, who is All-Powerful and whose
grip is very stiff. He asked them to
fear Allah’s wrath. “I will lose
nothing. You all will be annihilated in
the world and earn Allah’s wrath and
Hell will be your permanent abode in the
Hereafter,” he told them.

But
the people gave no ear to what he would
say. Consequently Allah’s wrath befell
them. One day it so happened that some
guests came to the house of Hazrat
Loot (A.S.).

They
were apparently boys and very beautiful.
When those people saw them evil
intention overtook them. Hazrat Loot (A.S.)
got very much worried on this attitude
and asked them not to insult his guests.
What has happed to you? Is there not a
single one to teach you good things,”
he asked and said, “Allah has created
woman for man marry them since it is
good for you. Anything instead of this
is very dirty and a great sin. There are
a lot of girls amongst the people who
are like my daughters. Marry them.”

Ignoring
what Hazrat Loot (A.S.) said the bad
elements from amongst the people
replied, “You are aware of our object.
We have nothing to do with women and we
are not going to agree with you.”

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) was very much worried as to
what he should do, at the same time his
guests said to him, “You need not
worry. We are angels and sent by Allah
we have brought, which is not far
away.”

Allah
uses His angels to implement His orders.
These angels run the entire
administration of the world and bring
Allah’s bounties as well as His wrath
for the people. This time they came in
the form of beautiful boys. And what the
bad elements of those people did with
them proved beyond doubt that they could
not be reformed.

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) once again told them
everything but they were unmoved and
refused to follow him. The angels said
to him, “Now the time for Allah’s
wrath has approached. You, along with
all you Muslim companions, go far away
from this habitation.”

Hazrat
Loot (A.S.) did the same and left his
wife behind with the Kafirs as she had
not so far believed in Allah. These are
only a man’s own good deeds that can
save him from Allah’s wrath. No
relative can do this. A woman can not be
dear to Allah just because she is the
wife of a prophet. Only those men and
women are ear to Him who does everything
in accordance with his well.

As
soon as Hazrat Loot (A.S.) and his
companions left the habitation.
Allah’s wrath befell it in the form of
a volcano. The entire habitation was up
side down. Stones rained on it and
within moments there remained no sign of
those who had disobeyed Allah. They were
erased from the ground as if they had
never existed.

Allah’s
grip is very strong. None can postpone
His decrees. He is All-Powerful. These
things have a lesson for those who do
not obey Allah and follow the path shown
by His prophet.

Things
to Remember

1.When
a man has no fear of Allah, it becomes
difficult for him to tread the path of
salvation.

2.The
messengers of Allah, who bring His
message, are not angles or God
incarnates.

3.Allah
has given wisdom to every man. He should
utilize it. It is not good to blindly
follow the path of one’s ancestors.

4.It
is the greatest virtue to the true at
every cost.

5.One
who has realized that Allah is the Lord
of this universe and worthy of worship,
he should show the tics the right Path
and be ready to face any difficulty.

6.To
please Allah is the greatest wisdom.
Everything can be abandoned to invite
others to His Deen.

7.A
Momin (true believer) can sacrifice
every thing including his wealth,
children, abode, relatives and even his
own life. But he can never turn back
from his Deen nor can he stop inviting
the people to the Deen of Allah. Such
man is the true believer of Allah.’

8.To
remain a Momin and Muslim and turn
one’s children also as such is the
greatest success of a Momin.

9.The
root cause of a man’s downfall is the
neglect of Allah. Whenever you find a
vice in some people, first of all create
in them the faith in Allah land firm
belief in the Hereafter. If this faith
is not restored, people cannot give up
vices.

10.Those
people who do not believe in the message
of Allah and reject it are kept alive
only till there is a hope that at least
some of them will tread the Right Path.
When this hope is also not there,
Allah’s wrath befalls them and
destroys them. Those amongst them, who
adopt virtue and invite others to it,
are spread from the wrath of Allah.

You
have read about Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S.).
He had two sons, Hazrat Isamel (A.S.)
whose generation settled in Makkah and
Hazrat Ishaq (A.S.) who settled in
Syria.

Hazrat
Ishaq (A.S.) had son named Hazrat Yaqub
[A.S.]. He lived in the Keenan city of
Syria. Allah had given him twelve sons.
One of them was Yusuf (A.S.) another was
Yameeen the real brother of Yusuf (A.S.).
All others was step-brothers.

Among
them Hazrat Yusuf (A.S) was the most
intelligent and noble. When he as only
16 years old, he saw a dream and in the
morning told this to his father. He
said, “Father, last night I saw a
dream in which I saw that eleven stars,
the sun and the moon are worshipping
me.”

After
hearing this, Hazrat Yaqub (A.S)
replied. “My son, don’t tell your
dream to your brothers lest they should
tease you. It occurs to me that
your Lord will choose you for His
mission. He makes you His prophet, grant
wisdom and, like your grand father Ishaq
(A.S.), and great grand father Ibrahim (A.S.)
bless you.”

Hazrat
Yaqub (A.S.) loved Hazrat Yusuf (A.S)
among his sons the most because he was
noble and very intelligent since
childhood. Now he had learnt that Allah
had decided to assign the task of
Prophet Hood to Hazrat Yusuf (A.S).
Therefore, his love for him had
increased. Other brothers did not like
it. They were jealous of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S).

In
Arabia, during those days, the family
that consisted of strong sons, grand
sons, brothers and cousins was
respected. Such a family always had an
upper hand over all others and
therefore, people loved their strong
sons. The brothers of Yusuf [A.S], used
to maintain that as they were stronger
than him only they could be useful at a
bad hour. According to them, Yusuf [A.S]
who was weak of all could not do
anything all alone, therefore, their
father should love them more and they
considered it their dishonour if Yusuf (A.S.)
was loved more than them.

One
day all the brothers, expect Yusuf [A.S],
gathered at a place and said, “It
seems our father has gone astray. He
should have respected us because we are
a full lot. It is wrong on his part to
love Yusuf (A.S.) more than us. Let’s,
therefore, kill Yusuf (A.S.) or leave
him at some far off place. When Yusuf (A.S.)
will not be among us, father will
naturally love us more.” One of them
suggested to throw their brother into a
well, In a jungle, instead of killing
him from where he could be taken along
by some caravan passing by.

All
of them liked this suggestion and went
to their father. They asked him,
“Father, why do you never send Yusuf (A.S.)
along with us anywhere. Do you have no
trust on us? We are his well-wishers.
Please send him with us to the jungle to
enjoy and play. We will protect him”.

Their
father replied, “I am worried to send
him with you. I fear lest you should be
careless and some wolf eats him up.”

“But
we are a strong lot, “the sons said,
“How can a wolf eat Yusuf (A.S.) when
we are there.” They somehow managed to
get their father’s consent and one day
took Yusuf (A.S.) towards the jungle. As
decided, they threw him into a well.

They
Allah consoled Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) and
made him believe that one day or the
other he would remind his brothers of
their mischief and that day they would
feel sorry over their deed. His brothers
were to aware that Yusuf (A.S.) was
being encouraged by Allah and of the
result of their mischief.

Before
throwing Yusuf (A.S.) in the well, they
had removed his Kurta [cloth worn on the
upper part of the body] and falsely
stained it with the blood of an animal.
At night when they returned home, they
went to their father weeping and said,
“Father, while we were busy in
playing, and seated Yusuf (A.S.) to look
after our belongings, a wolf appeared
from somewhere and ate him up. See this
is his blood stained Kurta.”

Hazrat
Yuqub (A.S.) did not believe them and
said, “You have certainly made some
mischief or deceit. I can not believe
what you say. I will only keep patience
and seek Allah’s help.”

On
the other hand, when his brothers had
left after throwing Yusuf (A.S) into the
well, a carvan happened to through
there. They sent one of them to fetch
water from the well. As soon as he
suspended the bucket into the well, he
saw a boy into it. He cried out,
“Congratulations. We have found a boy
here.”

The
people of the caravan pulled Yusuf (A.S.)
out of the well and immediately hid him
planning to sell him in the market. How
could they know that everything was
happening by the order of Allah and He
was aware of everything?

The
caravan was going from Madina to Egypt.
They took Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) also with
them and sold him out there for a very
few coins. They did not expect any other
benefit from Yusuf (A.S.)

The
king of Egypt had a minister whose name
was Fotifar. He was the highest official
treasury. He was called Aziz. He had
purchased Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) from the
caravan people. He had understood that
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) belonged to a
respected family and somehow fallen to
the caravan people. From his talks with
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) he had known that he
was very intelligent.

Aziz
had no sons. He said to his wife,
“Look after this boy well. He may
prove to be beneficial for us or we may
even adopt.

At
that time Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) was about
18 years of age. Soon Aziz authorized
him of everything at his home, and
handed over the management of his
property and business to him.

So
far Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) had spent a
rural life and had all the qualities of
a villager’ He was born in the family
of Allah’s messengers. He was a
devotee of Allah and very noble. Due to
the open atmosphere of the village, he
had very good health. Now Allah had
landed him in a country renowned for its
living. Moreover, he had now
entered a house where he could learn
governance and the administration of the
country. It looked as if he was being
groomed by Allah for His mission in the
future.

Allah
the Beneficent, on the one hand provided
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) with a good shelter
in an alien land. On the other, He
arranged for his training like of which
only princes could get. It is true that
Allah does fulfil His work but many
people do not know about the compulsions
behind what He does.

Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) live on at the house of
Aziz till he was young. The name of the
wife of Aziz was Zulaikha. One day when
Aziz was not at home, she closed itself
with Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) into a room,
with evil intention, and said to him,
“Come closer to me.”

Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) replied, “God forbid, my
Lord has bestowed on me so much honour
and such a shelter. How can I do this
evil deed? I cannot do it. My Lord does
not grant success to the sinners.”

At
this, that woman moved towards Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) Had he not realized
Zulaikha’s intention and replied
spontaneously, he could also have moved
towards her. But Allah had saved him
from bad and dirty things.

When
he saw the woman coming to him he rushed
to the door. But the woman was very
shameless. She followed him immediately
and caught hold of his Kurta. Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) tried to pull it back. In
the scuffle a piece of it remained into
the woman’s hand and Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.)
rushed out of the room. She also
followed him. As soon as they come out
of the room, they confronted with Aziz.
At this the woman was flabbergasted and
immediately asks him “what is the
punishment for a man who has an evil
intention about your wife.” Before
he could answer, she herself replied
thus: “What else accept that he should
be imprisoned or given severe and
exemplary punishment.

When
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) heard this he said,
“She is telling a lie. In fact, it was
she who was flirting me. But I did not
agree.”

In
the meantime, a relative of Zulaikha
appeared on the scene. Knowing, perhaps,
about the character of Zulaikha, he
understood everything and very wisely
suggested, “Let’s first see the
shirt of Yusuf (A.S.); if its front
portion is pierced, the woman is true
and if its back portion is pierced, then
the woman is telling a lie and Yusuf (A.S.)
is speaking the truth.” The suggestion
was logical, were the shirt of Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) the front, it would imply
that he would have moved towards the
woman and then pushed away by her. In
the scuffle his shirt might have been
torn. Since the shirt was torn from the
back it meant that Yusuf (A.S.) might
have tried to save himself and the woman
might have tried to catch him from the
back. One more evidence was in the form
that Zulaikha’s garments were not torn
nor her body bore any sears. The
position was contrary to it to clarify
the whole thing.

Aziz
then understood everything and cried at
his wife and said, “This is all your
mischief. It is true that you women are
very tricky.” Turning to Yusuf (A.S.)
he said, “Yusuf, forget it, and asked
his wife “Say sorry to Yusuf as it is
your mistake.”

Now
the entire city was aware of what
Zulaikha had done. Women said
“Aziz’s wife has blindly fallen in
love with her servant. It looks she has
committed a folly.” When Zulaikha
heard this, she got angry. So one day
she invited all the women for a meal and
seated them on coushions. She put
some fruits and a knife before each of
them. As soon as these women started
cutting the fruits, she called in Yusuf
(A.S.). When the women raised their eyes
towards Yusuf (A.S.), they were taken a
back, Instead of the fruits; they cut
off their own fingers and exclaimed,
“O God, he is not a man but an
angel.”

Zulaikha
said, “Look at him. He is the person
about whom you were defaming me. I
flirted him but he escaped. Now I have
decided to send him to jail if he did
not obey me. He will be debased
there.”

See
how shameless the Women of Egypt were in
those days. Today Europe is proud that
they have given equal status to women
and they are also free like men. But you
can judge how shameless the Egyptian
women were. The fact is that Satan’s
hirelings have always been almost the
same.

When
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) come to know about
Zulaikha’s ill intentions, he said,
“O my Lord, I will prefer imprisonment
to what she calls me for. O my Lord,
save me from these tricks lest I shall
be entrapped and thus be amongst the
uncivilized.” At this stage Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) was at the peak of his
youthfulness. Ladies of high families
would flirt him and compel him for
committing sin. But he stood firm and
noble even amongst such evil persons.
God’s fear kept him away from sin.

If
one wants to become pious, and decides
to follow the path of righteousness,
Allah also helps him. True to this fact,
Allah heeded the prayer of Hazrat Yusuf
(A.S.) and saved him from the trap of
those evil women. He is the All Knower,
All-wise.

These
people put Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) into jail
to avoid bad name and commit atrocities
on him. But the ladies of respectable
families knew that he was innocent. Thus
all the people became aware of the pious
thought and nobility of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.).
His mission in future also required that
he should be fully known. The
propagation of his nobility and piety
was necessary for the message of Allah
which he had to deliver to the people of
Egypt.

In
the prison two young men also joined
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.). One of them was a
bar tender to a king and the other a
kitchen officer. They were sent to the
imprisonment by the king for some
offence.

One
day both of them told their dream of the
previous night to Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.).
One of them said, “I saw in my dream
that I am preparing wine.” The other
added, “I also saw a dream I dreamt
that I have some loaves on my head and
birds are snatching at them.” After
having described their dreams, they said
to Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.), “You seem to a
nice man, please tell us their
interpretation.”

Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) replied, “I will tell you
their interpretation before you get
today’s meal. My Lord Has endowed me
with this knowledge. In fact, I have
given up following those who have no
faith in Allah and refuse to accept the
truth of the Hereafter. I have accepted
the Deen of my forefathers Hazrat
Ibrahim, Hazrat Ishaq and Hazrat Yaqub (Alaihimas-Salaam).
We do not associate anyone with Allah.
It is His mercy that He showed us the
Right Path of Deen, made us His servants
and relieved us from the clutches of
others. Those who refuse to be Allah’s
servant are compelled to serve others.
Most of the people are the servant of
Allah alone and, therefore, tend to
serve others.

“O
my jail-mates, just think whether to
serve and fold hands before many masters
is better than serving one master who is
One and All-Powerful. You have forgotten
Him and serving others who are no more
than that they have been named by you
and your forefathers and you have
started worshipping them as gods and
goddesses. What ever you say or do bears
no proof from Allah.

“Do
not forget that Allah is the Sovereign.
He is the Ultimate Authority. It is His
command not to worship a one else except
Him. This is the right course of leading
life but many people do not know
this.”

“O
my jail-mates, now listen. The dreams
you saw the other day means that one of
you will offer wine to his master i.e.
the king of Egypt. The other will be
hanged to death and birds will eat away
his head. You fate has been decided.”

This
is what Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) talked to
his jail-mates and how he taught them
the lesson of the Oneness of God and the
Hereafter. For us too, there is a lesson
in it.

Then
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) turned to the man
who was to offer wine to his king and
said, “When you go to the king tell
him about my condition.” But he forgot
to do so and Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) had to
remain in jail for several years.

One
night the king saw a dream. He told it
to his courtiers, “I saw in my dream
tonight that seven fat cows and that
seven ears of corn are green while
another seven are dry. O my ministers,
now tell me if you can, what does it
mean.” They replied, “It is a dream
about which we know nothing.” But one
of the two prisoners who were with
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) in jail, and was
present there, recalled him. First he
mentioned everything about then said,
“Send me to Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.). I
will tell you the meaning of your
dream.”

The
king sent him about the meaning of the
king’s dream and said, “I hope that
after hearing this they will come to
know how noble and good man you are.”
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) said. “You people
will have a good harvest for first seven
years. During these seven years you
should eat only what you can and save
your entire produce and leave the grain
in the ears of corns, Because after
those seven years there will be very
little harvest and you will have to eat
what you would have saved during the
first sever years’ After those hard
seven years, you will have enough rain
for one season. Your crops will be very
good and sufficient.”

When
the king heard this, he asked to bring
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) to him. But when the
king’s people went to Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.),
he said, “Go back to your master and
ask him to first make it clear why I
have been put into the prison. In this
regard, those women who had cut their
hands should be interrogated. Although
my Lord is aware of their hypocrisy, you
should also know what had actually
happened.”

After
hearing this message of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.),
the king enquired about the whole thing
and asked those women, “How did you
find Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) when you tried
to flirt him.” All of them said in one
voice, “By God, we saw nothing wrong
is Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.).

When
Aziz’s wife Zulaikha came to know
about the enquiry, she also had to say,
“Now the whole thing is open. In fact,
when I tried to flirt him round, he and
bring him proved to be totally true and
innocent,”

After
hearing this Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) said,
“What I actually meant by this enquiry
was that Aziz should also know that I
did not deceive him. I know Allah does
not make the attempts of deceivers
successful. Although I do not claim that
I am entirely a pious man. A man’s
self instigates him to commit evil deed,
but he can certainly abstain from evil
if he is blessed by my Lord. My Lord is
All Forgiving and Most Beneficent.”

The
king replied. “Bring Yusuf (A.S.) to
me, I want him to assign some of my
special tasks and make him my special
man.”

When
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) went to the king and
had talk with him, the king said, “We
respect and trust you fully. Therefore,
we want you to take charge of the
country’s food system in your
hands,” Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) replied,
“All the treasure of the country
should be handed over to me and let me
do what I want, I can look after the
country as well as the countrymen. I
also know how to carry out this task.”

The
king agreed to it Thus Allah granted him
the reigns of the government of Egypt
and he was authorized to do whatever he
wanted in the entire country. This is
how Allah gives. He gives to whom he
wants and whatever, He wants. In fact,
He never disappoints the pious people.
As far the reward of the Hereafter,
which in the true reward for Momin, it
is very good for those who have faith in
Allah and follow His orders abstaining
from his displeasure.

When
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) took over the
administration of the entire country, he
raised sufficient crops in the first
seven years and reserved the food grain.
After those years when drought hit the
country, no crops grew and the reserved
food was utilized. Lakhs of people were
saved from dying. People from far off
placed also used to come to Egypt to
take the food grain.

One
day the brothers of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.)
also come there in search of food
grains. Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) immediately
recognized them but they did not know
that the king of Egypt was their brother
Yusuf (A.S.). The father of Hazrat Yusuf
(A.S.) had kept his second son Bin
Yameen at home.

Everyone
was given a measured quantity of food
grains by the government and no one
could get more than that. Similarly the
brothers of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) also got
the food grains for ten persons. After
receiving it, they demanded the shared
of their old father and the eleventh
brother. Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) accepted
their demand but asked them to bring the
eleventh brother the next time. If the
father cannot come due to old age, then
he be left behind, he said.

On
the other hand he directed his servants
to conceal in their food grain what they
had brought with them for payment. This
he did because he was very impatient to
see his brother and wanted them to
return along with him shortly after
coming to know about this deed.

On
their return home, they told father
everything and said they would get the
food grain next time only when they took
Bin Yameen with them. They also asked
him to send Yameen with them and assured
to look after him. Their father
replied, “I wonder if, I can trust you
any more because I trusted you in the
case of his brother. Any way, the real
protector is Allah, who is the
Beneficent and the Merciful.”

As
soon as they opened their stuff which
they had brought from Egypt, they were
amazed to see that their own stuff had
also been returned. They said to
their father “Look father, they have
returned our stuff also. What more
should we want. We will now certainly go
and take Yameen also. We will be
responsible for his security.”

“I
will not do so unless you affirm and
swear by God that; you will certainly
bring him back. It will be a different
matter if you all get entrapped
somewhere,” their father replied. When
the affirmed, Hazrat Yaqub (A.S.) said,
“we hold Allah as our witness in this
matter. My son when you go to the
capital or Egypt, do not enter if from
one gate but disperse and use separate
gates. I can, of course, not save you
from what Allah wills because He is the
real king. I have put my faith in Him
and everybody should do the same.”

Do
you see that a Momin makes plans but
trusts Allah alone.

The
brothers of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) followed
their father’s direction and entered
the capital through different gates. But
their scheme failed and Allah’s will
prevailed upon. A momin
tries
his best but believes in Allah. He knows
that his efforts cannot alter Allah’s
orders. When these people went to Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.), he called his brother Bin
Yameen to him and said, “I am your
brother and live with me. Do not worry
and forget what these step-brothers have
done to you so far.”

When
their stuff was loaded and the time of
their departure came, someone quietly
put the king’s precious bowl into the
stuff of Bin Yameen. After they had
departed, the search for the bowl began.
The worried servants chased them for it.
Finally, the approached them and cried
out, “You are thieves,” Surprised,
they asked them, “What have you
lost.” One of them replied, “The
bowl of the king has got lost and anyone
tracing it will get a camel-load of food
grain, I guarantee that it will be
rewarded.”

All
the brothers said, “You know, we had
not come here to spread mischief and we
are not thieves. The king’s servants
said, “Well, if you are found guilty,
what will be your punishment.”
“According to our custom, they
replied, the one from whose baggage your
bowl is discovered should be held back
here as punishment.”

After
this their goods were searched and at
last the bowl was discovered from the
stuff of Bin Yameen. Accordingly
he was alone to be held back. In fact
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) did not think it
proper at all to punish his brother
according to the royal laws of Egypt. He
belonged to the family of prophets. What
was therefore, Proper for him was to act
pay upon Islamic Shari at and Allah also
helped him. Allah made the royal
servants to ask the punishment for a
thief from the caravan people. This
helped Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) as he did not
have to follow the un-Islamic law of not
he inhabitants of Egypt; there was
enough excuse for a different regulation
for them instead of the Egyptian one. It
is true that Allah is Most Merciful,
Most Benign. He confers His mercy on who
is over He wills. He is All-knowing,
All-wise.

When
the brothers saw all this, they tried to
save their face and said, “No matter
if he committed a theft; his brother was
also a thief. “Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) was
agitated over this allegation but kept
silence and uttered no word. He thought
how bad those people were to call him a
thief on face. Allah is aware of
everything including what they were
talking, he thought.

Then
they all started pleading before Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) and said, “O king, the
father of this boy is very old. Please
allow him to go and hold back one of us.
You are showing mercy on us.” Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) replied, “May Allah
forgive me, how is it go possible to
release the real culprit and hold
another one. If we do so, who will be
more cruel then us.”

Disappointed,
they began consultation among themselves
in a cone. The oldest among them said,
“Do not forget that you had sweared by
Allah and affirmed about him. You should
also keep in mind what you had done in
the case of Yusuf (A.S.). As for me, I
will not move from here unless our
father orders us to do so or Allah
creates a situation. You all go to the
father and tell him, “O Father, your
son has committed theft. We had told you
what we knew. We were not aware of the
hidden. If you do not believe us, ask
the people of the village where we had
stayed or the caravan people with whom
we came back. We are speaking the
truth.” These people returned and told
their father everything. Their father
replied. “So you have made another big
thing easy for you; it looks it is
nothing for you if Bin Yameen is held on
the charge of theft. Any way, I will
remain steadfast. Allah may return both
my sons. He is All-knower, All-wise.”

With
a heavy heart he recalled Yusuf (A.S.)
for a moment and then turned his face
from his sons.

He
would always weep for the loss of his
eyes had turned white. The shock had
fallen heavy on his heart. When the sons
saw all this, they one day said, “By
God, you will finish yourself in the
sadness of Yusuf (A.S.).” On this he
replied. “I do not plead before any
anyone but Allah for all my sadness and
pain and I know about Allah what you do
there. Do not loss faith in Allah’s
mercy as only Kafirs do so.”

According
to their father’s order, they again
went to Egypt and in the court of the
Egyptian ruler. They said, “O ruler,
we and our family are in great agony. We
have now brought all that we had, please
give us fully quantity of food grains
and give aims to us. Allah rewards those
who give alms.” When Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.)
heard all this about his family, he
could not help to tolerate it, He said,
‘Do you know what did you do with
Yusuf (A.S.) and his brother out of your
ignorance?” When they heard this, they
were taken a back and said, “Are you
really Yusuf (A.S.) ?”

“Yes
I am Yusuf,” replied Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.),”
and he is my brother. Allah has endowed
His mercy on us. The fact is that one
who fears Allah and suffers agonies
steadfastly is sure to get Allah’s
reward.”

“By
God,” they replied, Allah has raised
you to a far higher place than us we
have really committed a big mistake.”
Then Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) said, “Go,
you will not be sent. Take this shirt of
mine with you and spread it on the face
of my father. His sight will come back.
Then you return here with all your
family members.”

While
these people were still on their way
back to home, their father one day said
to himself, “I can smell Yusuf
somewhere around, don’t tell me that
it is an anecdotage.” The people at
home, said, “By God, you are still
languishing in the old cynicism” At
this reply Hazrat Yaqub (A.S.) kept
silence and did not repeat it. A few
days after this incident the caravan
from Egypt arrived and soon the
messenger of the good news spread the
shirt of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) on the face
of Hazrat Yaqub (A.S.). No sooner was it
done than he opened his eyes and could
see everything He immediately said,
“Would I not say that Allah has
endowed me with the knowledge of those
things which you do not know?” All the
sons said at one voice, “Our dear
father, forgive us Pray Allah for the
salvation of our sins we have committed
a big mistake.” I will certainly pray
Allah to forgive you. He is the Forgiver
Most Merciful,” their father replied.

After
this all of them proceeded for Egypt.
When Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) came to know
about their arrival there, he came out
of the city to receive them. These
people met Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) who
seated his parents honourably beside him
and said to his other family members,
“Come along with me and live in the
city comfortably”.

After
their arrival in the city, Hazrat Yusuf
(A.S.) seaten his parents on the royal
throne. All the people showered great
honour on them. Than he said, “Dear
father, this is the realization of my
dream which I had seen earlier. My Lord
has proved it true. It is His obligation
that he released me from imprisonment
and brought you to me from the desert,
although the Satan had left no stone
unturned in creating disunity among us.
It is true that my Lord is All Knowing
and All-Powerful”. Then he prayed
Allah, “O my Lord, You endowed me with
the rule of the country and wisdom to
look deep into matters. O my lord, you
have created the Heavens and the Earth.
You are the Decider of my fate in the
world and the Hereafter Raise me from
this earth as true Muslim and my status
to that of your noble servants.

Things
to Remember

Man
has little knowledge. Most of the
things he considers as bad some time
turn out to be useful for him. And
some times things for which he
wished considering them as useful
prove harmful for him.

Often,
agonies do have success in store for
a man provided he bears them
steadfastly for the pleasure of
Allah and always follows His
commands.

A
true servant of Allah, a Momin,
prefers agonies in the way of Allah
to all sorts of comforts and
luxuries earned by disobeying his
God. He gets ready to suffer all
agonies while obeying Allah because
he tends to believe that the real
comforts are those of the world
Hereafter. He knows fully well that
the agonies of h\this world have are
mortal.

Allah
often grants honour and comfort on
His noble servants in this world
besides rewarding him in the
Hereafter for his deeds in this
world. The more Momin is bestowed
Allah’s bounties, the more humble
he becomes towards Him. He always
seeks to please Him.

The
character of those who want to
spread virtue on earth should also
be free of evils so that when they
meet people, they should envy their
clean life.

People
should be told right things to bring
them on the right path at the right
time. When an opportunity comes,
They should be told everything
clearly and openly.

A
Momin, and particularly those people
who decide to establish Deen on
earth, cannot adopt any law except
the laws of Shariat.

None
other than Allah has knowledge of
the hidden things. Whenever He wants
He tells something or the other to
His prophets and other noble
servants. As you saw, Hazrat Yaqub (A.S.)
kept weeping for twenty years but
did not have enough power to know
the real condition of his son Yusuf
(A.S.). But when Allah wished,
Hazrat Yaqub (A.S.) gained the power
to smell his son while the people of
the caravan carrying his shirt had
just left Egypt and were hundreds of
miles away from him.

The
greatest task in the life of a Momin
is to spread virtue and eliminate
evil. He fulfils his miss even at
the worst of his days and does not
forget his responsibility even if he
is given a lot of wealth. Hazrat
Yusuf (A.S.) preached people the
Oneness of Allah and about the
Hereafter even in the prison and did
not stop it in spite of having
ascended the throne of power. On the
contrary he put in all his strength
to establish the Deen of Allah.

The
noble servants of Allah forgive the
mistake of their personal enemies
even when they possess enough power
to take revenge. They do not tease
others for their own sake. They
punish people only when necessary
for the interest of Deen.

Supplication
is the greatest might of a Momin.
Read carefully the supplication of
Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.) to Allah and; if
possible, find out the exact
wordings and translation of it in
the Holy Quran, You will see that
even after having all bounties of
Allah a Momin does not sever his
bonds with Allah you should learn
the supplication of Hazrat Yusuf (A.S.)
by heart.

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) was the prophet of Allah.
His father was Hazrat Daoud (A.S.). His
mother was also a very noble lady. Since
his childhood, she used to preach him
good things. Once she said, “My son
Suleman, give up the habit of sleeping
the whole night. One who does so does
not remember Allah during the night; his
good deeds may decrease on the Day of
Resurrection.”

Allah
had endowed Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) with
wisdom and intelligence since his very
childhood. Once his father Hazrat Daoud
(A.S.) delivering his judgement in a
case. Hazrat Suleman (A.S.), who was
then only eleven years old, was also
sitting beside him. The case was between
two persons one of whom had a claim that
the goats of the other person had gazed
his entire field and destroyed it
totally. The loss was estimated as much
as the cost of all the goats. Therefore,
Hazrat Daoud (A.S.) decided that all the
goats should be handed over to the
sufferer as reparation.

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.), who was listening to the
entire proceeding, intervened and said,
“Father, your judgement is absolutely
right. The farmer must get his loss
repaired. But I have a better idea in my
mind. Hazrat Dauoud (A.S.) said, Tell
me, my son. What is that idea?” Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) replied, “The herd of
these goats should be handed over to the
farmer to utilize them and their Milk,
The owner of these goats, and the other
hand, be asked to sow seed and cultivate
a crop in the farmer’s field. When it
grows as much as the destroyed one, he
should make it as well as the field over
to the farmer and take back his
goats.”

Hazrat
Daoud (A.S.) very much appreciated his
son’s decision and approved of it.

Hazrat
Daoud (A.S.) also ruled over a very
large country. After his death, Allah
appointed Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) as His
prophet on earth and also made him the
ruler of that country. Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
ruled not only on the human beings but
Allah had made even birds, animal’s
genii and the wind his subservient. He
had also particularly blessed Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) with the ability to
understand the language of animals. The
wind and the genii worked for Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.). The wind flew his thrown
in a moment from one place to another.
He would travel; from one city to
another in one day where as an ordinary
man can do so in a month. This was all
by the strength of Allah, on whose
orders the wind took His prophet from
one place to another. Today, man can
make and fly an aeroplane all over the
world with the help of his wisdom which
again has been granted by Allah,

Allah,
who created man, the animals and
everything in the world, also created
genii whom we cannot see. The genii are
also required to obey Allah’s orders.
The genii are good as well as bad. Those
genii who have faith in Allah’s
prophet’s are good, while those who
disbelieve are bad.

Allah
had made Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) the king
of the genii also. They would obey him
and perform the feats which are not
possible by man. They would dip into
deep oceans and retrieve precious pearl
from their bottom for Hazrat Suleman (A.S.).
They would build huge castles for him,
make weapons for wards, and perform
hundreds of such deeds as were out of a
man’s capability. This was exclusive
blessing of Allah on Hazrat Suleman (A.S.).

Allah
had also given uncalculateable wealth to
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.). But Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) always deemed it as
Allah’s trust and spent it only on the
poor and the needy. He never used that
wealth for his won comforts and luxuries
nor built high palaces with it. To meet
his personal needs he used to make
baskets and was content with its income.

It
is true that to be rich is not bad but
to spend the wealth for one’s own
comforts and luxuries is bad. Wealth and
property are Allah’s trust. A man, who
gets this wealth but does not forget
Allah, spends it on the poor and needy
and according to the will of Allah is a
good man.

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) would spend most of the
wealth Allah had given him on the spread
of Allah’s Deen and to help the poor
and the needy. He also loved horses as
these were used in wars in the way of
Allah. He had, therefore, many a horses
of high breeds at his stable. Out of his
love for the horses, once he sent for
them which were in thousands. He was
pleased to see that the horses were
strong and robust. He could not keep
from expressing his pleasure and said,
“I love them is, in fact, equal to
remembering Allah.”

It
is true that if a man loves his wealth
because he spends it for Allah’s Deen
and to help the needy, such love is also
like worshipping Allah.

The
horses were then withdrawn from Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) It was evening by them.
But he again sent for them and this time
lovingly started rubbing their ankles
and patting on their necks. His love
with horses has also been mentioned in
the Holy Quran. Allah liked very much
how Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) valued the
horses which were used in Jihad for the
sake of His Deen.

Once,
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) was leading a big
caravan to somewhere. The caravan
consisted of men genii, manner. The
caravan consisted of men genii, animals
and birds; All were moving in rows in a
proper manner. The carvan reached near a
valley where innumerable ants lived. As
the carvan drew closer, the chief of the
ants said, “O ants, the caravan of
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) are coming. Rush
into your moles lest they crush you
under their feet without knowing how
many ants were killed.”

As
Allah had blessed Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
with the ability to understand the
language of birds and animals, he heard
what the chief of the ants had said. He
was pleased to hear it. He smiled and
thanked Allah saying, “O Allah, I am
very thankful that you not only granted
me such a big kingdom but also enabled
me to understand the language of
animals. It is your great obligation on
me. “O Allah enable me to become a
thankful servant of Yours, value Your
bounties and duly thank for the, O Lord,
You sent blessing on my mother and
blessed my father with a large kingdom
and prophethood. O Allah, enable me to
perform such deeds as would please You.
O Lord send Your blessings on me and
count me among Your noble servants.”

Although
it was a small thing, it moved Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) so much that he recalled
all the bounties of Allah after hearing
the voice of the ant. He thanked offer
these bounties and asked Allah to enable
him to do good deeds and count him among
his noble servants. We should also thank
Allah every moment for His bounties; ask
Him to enable us to perform good deeds
and Pray: “O Allah, count us among
your noble servants.”

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) was the prophet of Allah
as well as the monarch of his country.
This does not mean that Hazrat Suleman
was like the so many other monarchs in
the past. Islam is against monarchy
because a monarch considers himself the
owner of his country and wants to rule
over everybody. A monarch who has more
strength and army wages war against the
one who ahs less strength and army and
usurps his country. Thus he goes on
expending his kingdom. Besides, a
monarch also considers his right at
enthrone anybody of his liking after his
death. Generally, a monarch’s son take
s his father’s place.

Islam
disapproves of all this. According to
its teachings Allah is the only Lord of
the entire universe and has the right to
run the affairs of this earth according
to His laws. Allah has authorized all
those who accept Him as their Lord to
select the best from among them as their
chief to run the affairs of the country.
This man is called a ‘Khaleefa’
(caliph). He does not rule the people
according his won laws but follows and
makes others to follow the laws which
‘Allah sends from time to time through
His prophets.

The
prophets of Allah are the best of the
man kind. They would also be the caliph
of the Muslims. They would follow and
make others also to follow the laws of
Allah. Allah has not given any family or
race or the general public of a country
the right to run the affairs of a
country or rule on this earth, as is
generally considered these days.
According to Allah, this right rests
only with those noble people who accept
Allah as their Lord, believe His laws.
It is however, a man’s individual
affair whether he believes or
disbelieves in Allah and whether he
follows His laws or not. If a man
becomes so stupid as not to he will be
in a loss, here as well as in the
Hereafter Such people can only be
convinced but not compelled as Islam
disapproves of it. Nevertheless, Islam
dose not allow anybody to prevent
anybody from the Right Path and enforce
his won laws is place of those of Allah.

The
prophet of Allah comes to this earth to
show the people the Right Path. Their
mission includes to inform the people
about Allah’s will relive them from
the clutches of man and make them
subservient to Allah. Those who follow
there prophets are Muslims. Those who do
not accept what they say and worship
other than Allah are called Kafir
(infidels).

The
prophets of Allah do not make Muslims
forcibly Just think whether it is
possible at all. How can a man become a
Muslim unless he rally accepts Allah and
his prophets. And nobody’s heart can
be changed or corrected. It is a man’s
own business to choose his course. The
prophets of Allah, however, do not allow
a few people to rule over others,
prevent them from Allah’s subservience
and not allow them to adopt the Right
Path. Allah’s prophets wage war
against such people and keep them
subdued with all their might.

Allah
had given Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
tremendous might with which he would
destroy the power of the disbelievers No
Kafir ruler around his Government ever
dared to raise its head. Once he
inspected all his army which included
genii and bird besides the people. He
found that the wood pecker was absent
from there. He became angry and said,
“Where is wood pecker why is he absent
without permission ? Produce him before
me when he comes he will be punished
severely for his absence. He will be
slaughtered if he does not give a
rational reason for his absence,”

In
the meantime, the wood-pecker was back.
When presented before Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
and asked by him where he had been the
wood-pecker said, “Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
I have brought a news which was hitherto
not ever in you knowledge. While flying,
I reached a country which is called the
country of “Saba” (Sheeba). It is
ruled by a woman and she is the queen of
that country. She has every thing
including wealth, and a very grand
throne, which is very big and costly. In
spite of possessing all this, she and
her people have forgotten God and
worship the sun. Those people are victim
of various evils. The satan has so
distracted them they have presumed these
evils as virtues and are regaling in
their infidelity. The Satan has
prevented them from the obedience of
Allah. They do all things that displease
Allah and are happy with that. There is
none among them to show them the path of
Allah’s obedience and tell them that
the sun does not deserve worship. No one
is there to tell them that only He
should be worshipped who sends rain from
the skies, grows trees from beneath the
earth which we cannot see before, He is
All knowing, He is aware of everything,
including what we hide. The fact is that
the people of that country have gotten
that only Allah deserves warship and
everything I the world is His creation
and that He is the Lord of this entire
universe.”

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) replied: “Now I want to
verify whether what you say is true or
wrong. Take this message and deliver it
to the queen. Let’s then see what she
replies.” In fact, he was very worried
after learning that the people and the
queen of a neighbouring country were
engaged in worshipping the sun and the
entire nation was distracted. Therefore,
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) decided to first
convey the message of Deen to the queen
of that country. He thought if she was
convinced and adopted Islamic way by
giving up kufr and shirk, associating
others with Allah) her people would also
follow her. They will also abandon
worshipping the sun and worship only
Allah.

Keeping
all this in view, he wrote the letter to
the queen of Saba, which read. This
latter is from Suleman (A.S.). In
the name of Allah, the beneficent, the
merciful; The real Deen Is the obedience
of Allah. Man has not been created
to worship such things as the sun and
The moon. He should worship such only
Allah and this is our message also.
Don’t venture to fight against me in
response to this message but the course
of peace and security for you is to
embrace Islam, accept Allah as your Lord
and obey Him as He alone deserves
Worship. He created man. If you agree
with me, come over here as a Muslim.

The
wood-pecker delivered the letter to the
Queen of Saba; She was moved after
reading it. She called her ministers and
Sardars read out the letter to them and
asked for their advice in this regard.
“As I do not do anything without
consulting you. In this case also
I want your opinion,” she said. The
Sardars became annoyed and said, “we
should not be subdued or fear. We have a
big force and we are not going to
retreat, We wait for only your command;
we will also sacrifice our lives and
have it cut with Suleman (A.S.) and his
force. As soon as you order us, we will
be ready for fighting.”

The
queen was a cool-mind and wise lady.
After hearing the reaction of the
Sardars, he said, “It is true that
when a king launches an attack on a
country, all the people of that country
are crushed and killed of no reason. The
crops and orchards are destroyed. The
respected people are abased and even the
best of them are not spared. Therefore,
the talk of war as a first step does no
appear to be correct.

“In
my opinion, I should first send some
costly gifts to Suleman (A.S.) and judge
him whether he is a greedy wordly king
or truly a prophet of Allah. The
courtiers of gifts will also witness
with their own eyes how that person is
and how much force he has. It will
improper to talk of war unless
everything is known about him. Any step
will be taken only after all the
circumstances are known.”

The
queen’s argument was quite rational.
The sardarwree silent and it was decided
that some people take a few gifts to
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.). Various costly
gifts, including gold and silver, were
packed. Besides, horses and servants
also formed the gifts. When these people
reached Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) along with
the gifts, he said: I do not at all need
all these things what Allah has given me
is far has given me a lot of things.
Keep your gifts with you and be happy. I
do not need these. My message was
different and only that should be given
consideration to. It is totally wrong
for a man to worship any other than
Allah. I am Allah’s prophet and have
been sent to show His servants the Right
Path. I have no other purpose. You
people return to your queen and tell her
that I do not need her wealth. I cannot
tolerate that you too remain unaware of
Allah’s worship and lead other people
also on the wrong path. It is my duty to
liberate man from man’s slavery and
show them the Right Path. Tell your
queen if she is not prepared obey Allah,
we will bring our forces. They will not
be able to face it. We will abase the
disobedient to Allah and evacuate them
from their habitations. Our mission is
the show the Right Path to the people
and not accumulate wealth,”

When
the queen’s men returned, they told
her every thing about Hazrat Suleman (A.S.).
The queen was convinced that he was not
a wordly king but may be, he was a
prophet of Allah. So, she decided to
herself meet Hazrat Suleman (A.S.).
Meanwhile, Allah sent him a revelation
and informed him about it. Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) therefore, decided to
perform a unique feat which should
convince the queen that he was truly the
prophet of Allah. Such a feat is called
a “mojaza”, a mircle.

Knowing
that the queen’s throne was very
costly and grand, Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
wished its presence there before the
arrival of the queen. He gathered all
his courtiers and said, “I want that
the throne of the queen of Saba should
be here before her arrival, tell me who
of you can do that.” A genii from
amongst them replied, “I can do this
and the throne will be before you leave
the court. I have the power to do this
and I am honest also. Not a single part
of the throne will be missing.” A
sahabi (companion) of Hazrat Suleman (A.S.),
who was an honest servant of Allah and a
special ma of him, meanwhile, intervened
and said, “Hazrat (A.S.), this is just
a matter of a moment, the throne will be
here.” Just as sahabi completed his
sentence the throne was present and
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) was very happy to
see that. He declared: “It is by the
Grace of my Lord that the throne of the
queen of Saba is in my court in a
moment. No man can do this. All these
feats and miracles are the gifts of
Allah. Who is testing me by bestowing
such benefits on me? Allah actually
wants to ascertain whether I am thankful
to Him or Not. I will be the greatest
unthankful if I assume that all these
feats are result of my strength. The
real strength and power is that of Allah
and this is because of His Grace alone.
Everything is done by His will. One who
thanks Allah is in advantage: He does
not benefit Allah but his further
benefited by Allah. But one who does not
thank Him list in a disadvantage and
does not accrue any body’s thanks, nor
does He need anyone’s help or praise.
He is Beneficent, the merciful.”

This
is instance of a momin. When a big feat
is done by him, he does not claim any
credit for that but acknowledges the
Greatness of Allah and believes that He
is All Powerful and everything is done
His order. But a distracted man praises
himself for any great feat performed by
him and asserts his own greatness. He
thinks that he has done that deed by his
own power and wisdom and considers it
the result of his own hardwork. This is
the difference between a Muslim and
Kafir. While a Muslim is thankful to
Allah and has trust in His power and
help, a Kafir has no help. When the
throne of Saba’s queen was placed
before Hazrat Suleman (A.S.), he said
Make some changes in it and change it
shape slightly. Let’s see whether the
queen recognizes throne or not.”

One
day a messenger informed about the
arrival of the queen. Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
called her to his place. As soon as she
entered it, her eyes fell on the throne.
When she was looking at it, Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) asked if her throne was
also like that. The queen replied, “It
looks the same throne.”

When
the queen recognized her throne, Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) told her the entire story
and informed her how it had come there
in an instant by the Grace of God. The
queen replied that such a miracle was no
more necessary to convince her. “We
had already come to know about you,
“The queen said, “we already knew
that you are not a wordly king and that
is why we were ready to follow you.
However, our people, who have been
worshipping others than Allah for a long
time, could not be reformed immediately
and that was a big hurdle.”

Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) did not reply but took
her to his palace. His palace was very
well built, with its floor made of
crystal glass. When the queen reached
the courtyard of the palace, she thought
that further ahead was deep water. She
hesitated to move forward. She was
scared to move forward. Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
said to her, “Don’t worry, it is the
floor of crystal glass.”

The
queen was astonished to see the grandeur
of the palace. She saw that on the one
hand Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) had all the
worldly wealth and such splendid
palaces, on the other, he was
good-mannered, good charactered and God
fearing person. Anybody else in his
place would have been proud of all this
and totally in-different to others. The
queen, however, was convinced that
Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) was not an
ordinary wordly king but really a
prophet of Allah. The she announced
before Hazrat Suleman (A.S.) to embrace
Islam and said, “O Lord, I have
tortured myself by having worshipped the
sun instead, of You and bowed my head
before others. Now I, with Hazrat
Suleman (A.S.) pledge to obey You and
affirm that You alone is the Lord of the
Universe, the Sustainer of all and none
except You deserves worship and
obedience.

The
queen of Saba became Muslim and the
objective of Hadrat Suleiman (A.S.) was
thus achieved.

When
Hadrat Suleiman (A.S.) was nearing his
demise the genii were busy in
constructing a building. Hadrat Suleiman
(A.S.) had come to know about his death
well in advance. He also knew that the
genii will continue work on the
buildings as long as he was alive but as
soon as they came to knew that he was
alive but as soon as they came to knew
that he was no more, they would just
stop the work. Hadrat Suleiman (A.S.)
wanted to get the building completed.
Therefore, he arranged it so that the
genii did not come to know about his
death and continued to believe him as
alive. He therefore stood before the
building under construction resting on
his stick and the angle of death took
out his soul in the same posture. The
genii continued to believe that Hadrat
Suleiman (A.S.) was standing resting on
his stick and they went on working till
and caught the stick, The body of Hadrat
Suleiman (A.S.) fell down. The genii
could this come to know about his death
only after the building was completed.
Secondly, the genii who earlier believed
that they were aware of the future
events were now convinced that only
Allah knew about the future. If they
were aware of future, they would not
have been unaware of his death and would
not have suffered the rigours of the
construction work.

Some
people feel that the genii and the
Satans have knowledge about the future.
They have been told by this incident
that only Allah know about the future.
Similarly, those who have faith in
astrologers, astronomers, pandits and
such other persons are distracted. These
people only fire in the darkness. The
should not believed.

Things
to Remember

To
be rich is not bad but to spend
wealth on luxuries is bad.

The
wealth is also a blessing of Allah,
provided man does not forget Him
after receiving it, helps the needy
and the poor and spends Allah’s
wealth according to His will.

The
significance of wealth in the eyes
of a momin is that he should spend
it for Islam and to help the needy.

It
is the quality of a momin to thank
Allah, for His bounties and not to
consider any of his characteristics
as his own but a blessing of Allah
and thank Him for it.

A
momin believes that if he thanks
Allah, his wealth will increase. It
is not a Momin’s quality to forget
Allah after receiving His bounties.

All
bounties of Allah are, In fact, for
His obedient servants, here as well
as in the Hereafter. However
Allah’s bounties in the world are
for all, momins as well as the Kafir,
as a test. But in the Hereafter only
the obedient servants of Allah will
be entitled for His bounties.

Nobody
can be forced to reconcile with Iman
and Islam. Had it been so, Allah
would have made everybody a Momin
and nobody would dare disobey Him.
Instead, Allah has set every man to
liberty. Now it is man’s choice
between His obedience and
disobedience.

A
momin also resorts to the use of
force for Allah but he does so only
when it become impossible to teach
the people right things through
preaching and when kufr becomes a
hurdle in the way of Deen. Even such
use of force is subject to certain
conditions. This is not an ordinary
man’s job.

None
except Allah has knowledge of the
concealed and even the prophets are
ignorant about the future Although
Allah had given Hazrat Suleman (A.S.)
every authority and power on all His
creation but he to lacked knowledge
of the concealed. For instance, he
had to search where the wood-pecker
had disappeared.

A
momin always considers his feats.
How so ever big they may be not as
his own but a blessing of Allah.
Contrary to it a rebel boasts of his
successes and asserts, “I have
done this, I have done that,” He
considers his mind and strength as
supreme and he attributes his
successes to his own efforts.

The
genii and the satan are also
ignorant of the concealed like man,
None except Allah is aware of the
future. The astrologers, pandits and
astronomers only throw arrow in the
dark. Belief in such things makes
one’s Iman falter.